What’s happening
Since 2025, people in many countries have reported Instagram and Facebook accounts being disabled without warning. This page lists, in date order, only what can be checked against a published source.
As of 20 October 2026 · Each entry links to its source.
Facebook group admins report mass bans
Admins of Facebook groups reported that groups were being banned in large numbers. Meta said it was aware of a technical error affecting some Facebook Groups and was working to fix it.
Source: TechCrunch (opens in a new tab)
US users report accounts disabled over child-exploitation claims
Users in the US said their accounts were disabled for child-exploitation violations they did not commit. An online petition asking Meta to act had more than 48,000 signatures at the time of a November 2025 report; it later closed with 65,023 supporters (Change.org (opens in a new tab)).
Source: WFSB (opens in a new tab)
European Commission issues preliminary findings under the Digital Services Act
The European Commission preliminarily found that the notice-and-action and appeal mechanisms of Meta’s Instagram and Facebook may breach the Digital Services Act (DSA). Meta disputes the findings.
Meta launches a central support hub with selfie-video verification
Meta launched a central support hub for Facebook and Instagram accounts, with identity verification by selfie video. An AI support assistant followed in 2026.
Australia’s under-16 social media ban takes effect
Australia’s ban on social media for children under 16 took effect. Meta removed accounts it believed belonged to under-16s. Adults who were wrongly flagged can verify their age.
Source: TechSpot (opens in a new tab)
Korean regulator opens an investigation into mass Instagram deactivations
Korea’s Media and Communications Commission opened a fact-finding investigation into mass Instagram account deactivations under the Telecommunications Business Act.
Source: GRC Report (opens in a new tab)
Indonesia begins enforcing age rules (PP Tunas)
Indonesia began enforcing the age rules in its PP Tunas government regulation, and Meta started deactivating accounts of users under 16 in phases.
Flaw in AI support flow abused to take over accounts
A flaw in Meta’s AI support flow was abused to take over about 20,000 Instagram accounts. Meta’s notice to the Maine attorney general listed 20,225.
Appeals Centre Europe publishes its second-year figures
Appeals Centre Europe, an out-of-court dispute settlement body certified under the Digital Services Act, reported about 24,000 disputes in its second year (April 2025–March 2026). Of more than 5,000 eligible disputes challenging account suspensions, by the end of March 2026 it had decided fewer than 150 after receiving the relevant content from the platform (all platforms combined).
Oversight Board decides its first account-disabling case
Meta’s Oversight Board decided its first case about a disabled account. It upheld the ban but recommended clearer notices — stating the rule broken, the penalty and whether automation was involved — as well as real appeals and written explanations.
Age-verification error suspends thousands of accounts in Taiwan
In Taiwan an age-verification error suspended thousands of accounts. The Ministry of Digital Affairs demanded that Meta identify and restore the wrongly suspended accounts.
Source: Taiwan News (opens in a new tab)
Malaysian regulator reports a WhatsApp error
Malaysia’s Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) said Meta acknowledged a technical error that wrongly flagged normal WhatsApp activity.
Source: Bernama (opens in a new tab)
What is not published
Meta does not publish how many accounts were wrongly disabled per country.
This list only includes publicly available, sourced information. If something is wrong or you know of a source we should add, please write to the contact email (metaaccountbanhelp@proton.me). You can also share news on the community board.
If your own account was disabled, start with the recovery guide.